Week 14

Okay I can say now that I am suffering from congested nose. I've been battling sleep with it for a little more than a week now. Bleeding gums have subsided, only occassionally occurs. And yes, plenty of discharges. Luckily I've started wearing pantyliners a few weeks back.

Nothing to worry about, they're all normal. Though I wish I've something to help relieve this stuffiness. Sometimes I wake up with a migraine on the passage that's been congested the whole night before. Occassional headaches is also normal. Oh and nausea. It hasn't stopped completely. Still pops for a visit sometimes when I get too tired.

We went around searching Daddy's laptop thingy, then to West Lakes to finally get that paper shredder. And lunch. I bought 3 lunches. At 14 weeks, I still have no interest in cooking or food in that matter. Yet able to stuff my face relentlessly. An egg and lettuce sandwich, a subway 6 inch and a garlic naan bread. Took a couple of bites from each and stuff them all in my bag for later. Ask me again what I'd like for lunch/dinner, I'll probably give you a list and end up eating something else.

I know I've walked too much when this sharp pain occurs slightly below my spine and lower back. Not yet near the bum area. Just somewhere in between. Will bring that up to the ob next Tues.

I've not seen any linea nigra happening but a slight, most tiniest ripple of stretch mark on the side of my belly. Immediately cried out to Daddy and slip slop slap those lotions and creams all over bum, thighs, tummy and arms. Varicose veins are certainly showing more than usual. Then again I'm so fair it doesn't make any difference anyway. And they don't hurt. Oh constipation! That's another battle. Ughh. Lots of fluids, fruits, yoghurts and gentle exercises, I heard.

So I have put on a brave face and weigh myself again few days in a row in the morning before breakfast and right out of bed. I've actually gained 4 kgs and the extra kilo I had before was either lunch I had together with some unrelieved poo/wee. Still.. 4 kgs is a boo-hoo.

Strange with heartburn though. Daddy seems to be suffering a lot more from it than I do! He sleeps through the night and woke up to throw up! Happened a couple of times. Me on the other hand, not too bad. Only once or twice so far.

I've not felt any movements in my belly yet. Maybe it's still very early. Or I've felt it but don't know that it is. Backaches are bearable. Doc mentioned to look forward to second trimester. You'll feel much much better like pregnancy is easy, I can handle this. To entering third trimester and feeling discomfort can't wait for the baby to pop out! And then, comes the labour and birth itself! Ok. I.. think.. I'll.. just.. take it one day at a time now, thank you very much.

Week 14: Shake it baby!

Fetus in fourth month Isn’t it glorious? You and your little buckaroo have roped your way right into trimester numero dos! Are you ready to rock!? Okay, okay… maybe just a little rolling and poking. Needless to say, your baby will definitely be making themselves known in the upcoming weeks. At about 3.5 inches long, their little body and limber limbs are coordinated enough for loads of complicated motions. In fact, their whole body is moving right now! You're not feeling it because their current size is still a bit too small to make an impact you'd recognize. Still, their movements are recognizable on an ultrasound. Speaking of which, you shoud be scheduling one with your health care provider! Week 16 is the classic date as you can usually determine whether your little one is going to pee standing up or sitting down. Your baby is also starting to develop the ability to move their eyes this week, although the eyelids still remain fused shut. What's more, they can make all sorts of fun facial expressions as they practice squinting, frowning, and grimacing. Cute development of the week: their little hands can grasp at things and they may already be sucking their thumb!

And how's mom doing? What’s in the forecast for your second trimester? We’ve got a heavy concentration of developing fetal movement, which will increase in magnitude in frequency through the duration of the second trimester before subsiding in the third trimester as womb-space becomes limited. If you think you’ve got gas or some kind of odd bowel obstruction right now, it might actually just be your little one poking you hello! You’ll become more familiar with the sensation as the frequency and intensity increase (and you’ll never quite forget this special feeling!.

On to the less exciting news. In your second trimester, you will most likely experience some if not all of the following symptoms to varying degrees: dizziness, headache and back pain. Just like morning sickness during the first trimester, your chances of experiencing a given set of symptoms increases if you’ve already had them in a previous pregnancy. Unfortunately, if you’re starting to experience back pain, it will most likely increase as you gain more weight towards the end of the trimester. Although unavoidable during your waking hours, you don’t have to suffer so much during the night—there are some wonderful products out there such as the full body pregnancy pillow, which will help you make it through the night without too much undue suffering. Water retention is another fairly classic albeit annoying pregnancy symptom which typically leads to swollen fingers, toes, ankles and/or legs. These are all perfectly normal (and fairly bearable) symptoms that should not be a source of unnecessary stress. Despite these annoyances, the second trimester is typically experienced as the most exciting and enjoyable of the three— the morning sickness is gone, you definitely feel and look pregnant, but you’re not yet an overstuffed-lumbering-mammoth. Go team go!